Category: Immigration

by Michael Gillan Peckitt July 8, 2025 Number of comments0
Disability Health Immigration Japan Welfare

Foreigners May Have to Pay Lump Sum for Health Insurance in Some Parts of Japan

Foreign residents may soon have to pay their national health insurance premiums up front in some areas, according to a plan by the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry. The move is meant to keep foreign residents from dodging medical fees. As of the end of 2024, foreigners were only paying their insurance premiums 63% of the time, well below the 93% figure for all residents of Japan, both Japanese and foreign nationals, according to a survey by the ministry of 150 municipalities.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 11, 2025 Number of comments0
Disability Hospitals Human Rights Immigration Japan Medical

Japan to Tighten Immigration Rules Over Unpaid Medical and Insurance Bills

The Japanese government plans to introduce a “rigorous screening” system by June 2027 that will deny visa renewals to mid- and long-term foreign residents who have failed to pay medical expenses, taxes, or social insurance premiums. The move comes as the Cabinet prepares to approve policies aimed at creating “an orderly and harmonious society with foreign nationals.” A 2024 health ministry survey found that 65.3% of medical institutions accepting foreign patients had unpaid bills, with foreign nationals accounting for 29.3% of debtors but just 1.4% of the total amount owed. Despite these concerns, officials acknowledge there is no nationwide data on insurance payment compliance by foreign residents.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt November 27, 2024 Number of comments0
Disability Human Rights Immigration Japan Korea

Korean Daily Newspaper ‘The Hankyoreh’ Reports on Disability Activist’s Deportation from Japan

The Korean daily newspaper ‘The Hankyoreh’ – ‘The Korean People’ – reported on November 25th about disability activist Park Kyung-Seok being deported from Japan at Narita Airport. Go Na-rin writing for the ‘Hankyoreh’, reported on the 25th that Park Kyung-seok, the leader of the Korean Disabled People’s Solidarity Against Discrimination (Jeonjangyeon) held a press conference in front of the Japanese Embassy in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Park displayed documents related to Japan’s “Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act,” which were cited by Japanese immigration officials when denying his entry. Park stated, “The immigration officer had all the materials about me, from composite sketches to the latest news articles.”

by Michael Gillan Peckitt November 26, 2024 1
Disability Human Rights Immigration Japan Korea

Reasons Emerge for Korean Disability Activist Park Kyung-Seok’s Deportation at Narita

On November 22nd, a Korean disability activist Park Kyung-Seok was deported from Japan after seven hours at Narita Airport, along with his two caregivers. The reason given for Park’s deportation was that in South Korea he has received a suspended sentence for violation of the Assemblies and Demonstrations Act in 2012 for attending an illegal demonstration in South Korea and that under Article 5, paragraph 1, paragraph 4 of the Japanese Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act Park could be deported. However, Park had been allowed to enter Japan in 2016 and in May of this year, at the invitation of Amnesty International, according to Daisaku Seto of the ‘Anti-Poverty Network’.